Abstract: A mechanism for mechanically coupling a driving source and a driven member. The mechanism includes a first member coupled to the driving source and a second member coupled to the driven member. A resilient member exerts a force to bring the first and second members into pressure contact at a contact surface. A vibration is excited in the contact surface of the first member to produce a levitation force, based on an ultrasonic levitation, acting upon the second member. Frictional force between the first member and the second member is changed depending on the levitation force, thereby changing power transmitted between the first member and the second member.

Abstract: A silicon carbide-containing particle that contains silicon carbide is disclosed, wherein the silicon carbide contains at least one of silicon carbide with polymorph 6H and silicon carbide with polymorph 15R and a total content of the silicon carbide with polymorph 6H and the silicon carbide with polymorph 15R in the silicon carbide is approximately 70% or more by weight. A method of manufacturing a silicon carbide-based sintered object using the silicon carbide-containing particle, a silicon carbide-based sintered object that can be obtained by using the silicon carbide-containing particle, and a filter that includes the silicon carbide-based sintered object are also disclosed.

Abstract: A firing furnace for firing a firing subject. The firing furnace includes a housing including a firing chamber and a plurality of heat generation bodies arranged in the housing and generating heat with power supplied from a power supply to heat the firing subject in the firing chamber. At least one of the plurality of heat generation bodies includes a plurality of resistance heater elements connected in parallel to the power supply.

Abstract: A firing furnace comprising: a muffle formed so as to ensure a space for housing a formed body to be fired; a member that constitutes a heat generator and is placed on and/or around the muffle; and a heat insulating layer that contains said muffle and said heat generator inside thereof, wherein a carbon-natured sheet is placed in the vicinity of corner portions of an inner face of said heat insulating layer.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus are provided for: monitoring processor tasks and associated processor loads therefor that are allocated to be performed by respective sub-processing units associated with a main processing unit; detecting whether a processing error has occurred in a given one of the sub-processing units; re-allocating all of the processor tasks of the given sub-processing unit to one or more participating sub-processing units, including other sub-processing units associated with the main processing unit, based on the processor loads of the processor tasks of the given sub-processing unit and the processor loads of the participating sub-processing units; and at least one of: (i) shutting down, and (ii) re-booting the given sub-processing unit.

Abstract: A mechanism for mechanically coupling a driving source and a driven member. The mechanism includes a first member coupled to the driving source and a second member coupled to the driven member. A resilient member exerts a force to bring the first and second members into pressure contact at a contact surface. A vibration is excited in the contact surface of the first member to produce a levitation force, based on an ultrasonic levitation, acting upon the second member. Frictional force between the first member and the second member is changed depending on the levitation force, thereby changing power transmitted between the first member and the second member.

Abstract: A transfer roller is used in an electrophotographic printer. The transfer roller rotates in contact with a rotating photoconductive drum with a print medium travelling therebetween. The transfer roller has a metal shaft around which a rubber roller is formed. The rubber roller is sponge-like and electrically semiconductive. The rubber roller is covered with a resin tube which has a lower layer formed on the rubber roller and an upper layer formed on the lower layer. One of the upper and lower layers has a higher sealing effect than the other of the upper and lower layers, and the other of the upper and lower layers has a higher stability of electrical resistance than the one of the upper and lower layer.

Abstract: This invention has as its object to provide a ceramic heater provided at low cost without being compromised in its performance, with the result that a ceramic heater equivalent to the conventional product in performance characteristics can be manufactured at reduced cost. A ceramic heater comprising a core, an insulation sheet covering the core and a resistance heating element of high-melting metal embedded between the core and insulation sheet, a high-temperature part of the resistance heating element, the operating temperature of which reaches 300° C. or higher, comprises a high-melting metal supplemented with Re or Mo.

Abstract: A ceramic heater which comprises an insulation sheet comprising 88 to 95 weight % of Al2O3 supplemented with, as sintering aids, 3 to 10 weight % of SiO2, 0.4 to 1.0 weight % of MgO and 1.0 to 2.5 weight % of CaO, a core covered with the insulation sheet, a resistance heating element of high-melting metal as interposed between the insulation sheet and core, and an intermediate layer of an alumina ceramic body having a thickness of 5 to 50 &mgr;m, the alumina ceramic body containing 0.05 to 4 weight % of SiO2, 0.01 to 0.5 weight % of MgO and 0.01 to 1.2 weight % of CaO as interposed between at least a part of the resistance heating element and the core.

Abstract: Plural guide holes are arranged in a matrix form in a wire guide. Plural print drivers are circularly arranged in plural layers for first print drivers belonging to a layer near to the wire guide and for second print drivers belonging to a layer far from the wire guide. A print wire is provided at each print driver so as to project end thereof from the guide hole of the wire guide when driven. The print wires formed at the first print drivers are inserted in the guide holes of lines located at the edge formed in the wire guide. On the other hand, the print wires formed at the second print drivers are inserted in the guide holes of lines located at the center of the wire guide.

Abstract: In a wire dot printer having a wire-dot print head provided with wire drive elements disposed in sequence, the energization of the respective wire drive elements is controlled in accordance with print data supplied for respective drive elements and a drive time signal supplied in common to a plurality of the drive elements. Detection is made, for each drive element, whether or not an adjacent drive element is energized, in accordance with the print data corresponding to the adjacent drive element, and the energization time for the particular drive element is controlled in accordance with the result of the detection.

Abstract: A wire driving mechanism for a wire-dot print head employs a piezoelectric element or a magnetostrictive element as a driver (5). To enable printing with a satisfactorily high print quality, the wire driving mechanism employs the extensional force of the driver (5) to pivot two generally parallel levers (3a, 3b) respectively having fixed ends. When the levers (3a, 3b) are pivoted, the free end of each of the levers (3a, 3b) is moved by a displacement which is a multiple of the extension of the driver (5). The respective displacements of the free ends of the levers (3a, 3b) are transmitted by a pair of support members (6a, 6b) to opposite sides of a driving member (8) at positions on different levels with respect to the longitudinal direction of the driving member (8). As a result, the driving member (8) is moved so that a print wire (7) attached to the driving member (8) is advanced in a printing direction.

Abstract: A spring-charged wire dot print head having printing wires is provided with back poles paired up respectively with the cores of electromagnets for cancelling the magnetic flux produced by a permanent magnet, to eliminate the adverse effect of magnetic interference liable to occur in driving the adjacent printing wires. The adjacent pairs of cores and back poles are opposite to each other with respect to the polarity of the magnetic path of the magnetic flux produced by the permanent magnet.

Abstract: In a wire dot print head, swinging members are formed of plate springs and armatures, which are attracted toward a core to resiliently deform a plate spring when an associated coil is not energized, and are released and moved forward when the coil is energized. The swinging members are swung about the forward tip ends of fulcrum members. A partition sheet is interposed between the rear surfaces of the swinging members and both the front ends of the cores and the front tip ends of the fulcrum members to interrupt transfer of grease, and to prevent direct contact of the cores and the fulcrum members with the armatures. The partition sheet includes a front plastic film, a metallic residual sheet, and a rear plastic film which are stacked in the stated order from the front side to the rear side of the print head. The front film is bonded to the metallic residual sheet over the entire surface of the metallic residual sheet.

Abstract: In a wire-dot print head which comprises print elements arranged in a ring, each having an electromagnet formed of a core and a coil, and in which the electromagnets are divided into a plurality of blocks so that each block has a plurality of electromagnets, and a common current conduction control element is provided for each block and used to control current through the coils of the electromagnets in the block, the electromagnets of each of at least some of the blocks are disposed so as not to be physically adjacent to each other. Because of the above arrangement, currents through the coils due to magnetic interference between the adjacent electromagnets is reduced and power consumption is reduced.

Abstract: A wire dot printing head includes armatures each of which is coupled to a printing wire, a felt guide for reducing the friction between the printing wires and a printing wire guide, a residual sheet disposed over a magnetic core frame, a biasing leaf spring, and a oil leakage preventing member. Such member is disposed over the armatures to intercept oil flowing from the felt guide. An erroneous dot printing operation due to the arms of the leaf spring sticking to the residual sheet is prevented.

Abstract: A wire-type print head comprises an armature to which a rear end of a printing wire is fixed, a core having its forward end adjacent to a rear surface of the armature, a leaf spring having a first end fixed near a permanent magnet and a second end fixed to the armature, and an auxiliary core positioned between the permanent magnet and the core, and having a forward end adjacent to the rear surface of the armature. An electric current is made to flow through a coil wound on the core for generating a magnetic flux through the core in a direction to cancel the magnetic flux due to the permanent magnet. When the coil is not energized the armature is attracted toward the core to resiliently deform the leaf spring. When the coil is energized the armature is released and moved forward by the action of the leaf spring. The rear surface of the armature is kept in contact with the front end of the auxiliary core so that the front end of the auxiliary core forms a fulcrum point for swinging of the armature.

Abstract: A wire-type print head comprises an armature to which a rear end of a printing wire is fixed, a core having its forward end adjacent to a rear surface of the armature, a leaf spring having a first end fixed near a permanent magnet and a second end fixed to the armature, and an auxiliary core positioned between the permanent magnet and the core, and having a forward end adjacent to the rear surface of the armature. An electric current is made to flow through a coil wound on the core for generating a magnetic flux through the core in a direction to cancel the magnetic flux due to the permanent magnet. When the coil is not energized the armature is attracted toward the core to resiliently deform the leaf spring. When the coil is energized the armature is released and moved forward by the action of the leaf spring. The rear surface of the armature is kept in contact with the front end of the auxiliary core so that the front end of the auxiliary core forms a fulcrum point for swinging of the armature.

Abstract: A wire dot-printing head has an armature, a printing wire fixedly mounted on a tip end of the armature, a leaf spring fixedly mounted in one end thereof on a rear end of the armature and fixed in the other end, a spring branch part provided on the leaf spring in the vicinity of the fixed end of the leaf spring, and an adjusting screw adjustable from the outside to be brought into close contact with the spring branch part for deflecting the leaf spring for thereby adjusting a deflection of the leaf spring and thereby an impact force of the printing wire.